New Game+

New Game+

Welcome, Jarl, to the ultimate test of your Viking prowess! New Game+ in Assassin's Creed Valhalla offers a fresh perspective on Eivor's epic journey, allowing you to carry over much of your hard-earned progress while facing renewed challenges. This guide will help you navigate the nuances of your second (or third, or fourth!) playthrough, ensuring you make the most of every raid and every saga.

Starting Your New Game+

Initiating a New Game+ is straightforward. From the main menu, select "New Game+" after you have completed the main story campaign. You'll be prompted to choose which save file to carry over. Be mindful that while most progress transfers, some elements reset. Here's a breakdown of what to expect:

• What Carries Over:
  • Eivor's Level and Skills: Your hard-earned power level and all unlocked skills remain intact, allowing you to dominate early encounters.
  • Equipment and Inventory: All weapons, armor, runes, resources (iron, leather, titanium, etc.), and consumables (rations, arrows) transfer. This means your fully upgraded Gae Bolg or Excalibur are ready for action from the start.
  • Helix Store Items: Any purchased or redeemed Helix Store items, including mounts, raven skins, and cosmetic sets, are available immediately.
  • Mastery Points: If you've reached the mastery level, your mastery points will also carry over.
  • Settlement Decorations: Most cosmetic decorations for Ravensthorpe will remain unlocked.
• What Resets:
  • Story Progress: The main narrative, including all quests, alliances, and choices, resets. You'll relive Eivor's arrival in England and the subsequent forging of alliances.
  • World Exploration: All synchronization points, wealth, mysteries, and artifacts on the world map will reset. You'll need to rediscover them.
  • Settlement Progress: While decorations remain, the actual buildings and upgrades in Ravensthorpe will need to be rebuilt. This means collecting raw materials and supplies again.
  • Odin's Sight Progress: Any progress within the "Forgotten Saga" DLC will reset, allowing you to experience Niflheim anew with your powerful gear.
  • Siege of Paris Progress: Similarly, the "Siege of Paris" DLC storyline and associated challenges will reset, giving you another chance to influence the fate of Francia.

Strategies for a Dominant New Game+ Run

Early Game Domination

With your high power level and advanced gear, the early game becomes a playground. Focus on these objectives:

1. Rush Main Story Quests: Leverage your power to quickly progress through the initial arcs, such as the Saga Stone questline in Rygjafylke or the first alliances in Ledecestrescire and Grantebridgescire. This will rapidly unlock key features like the settlement and the longship.
2. Prioritize Settlement Upgrades: Rebuilding Ravensthorpe is crucial for unlocking new features and passive bonuses. Focus on the Hidden Ones Bureau, Barracks, and Cartographer to quickly gain access to important services and information. Remember to collect raw materials and supplies from raids.
3. Re-Explore for Resources: While you have existing resources, re-exploring wealth locations will net you additional ingots and gear, allowing you to further upgrade any new weapons or armor you might acquire.

Optimizing Your Build

New Game+ is an excellent opportunity to experiment with different builds or refine your existing one. Consider these points:

• Try New Weapon Combinations: With all weapons unlocked, experiment with dual-wielding different weapon types. For example, a spear and a dagger for fast, agile combat, or two heavy shields for an unyielding defense.
• Mastery Point Allocation: If you've reached the mastery level, strategically reallocate your mastery points to further specialize in a particular playstyle (e.g., increased melee damage, ranged precision, or stealth efficacy).
• Rune Optimization: Review your rune setups. Are you maximizing your damage output, survivability, or stealth capabilities? New Game+ allows for more refined rune choices.

Tackling DLCs Anew

The Forgotten Saga (Niflheim)

Entering Niflheim in New Game+ with your fully upgraded gear provides a significant advantage. However, remember that the roguelite nature of the DLC means your gear is stripped upon entry. The benefit comes from your skill tree and mastery points, which remain active and provide a strong foundation for your runs.

• Early God Favors: Focus on acquiring powerful God Favors early in your runs. Your increased base stats from the main game will make the initial encounters easier, allowing you to build up a strong arsenal of abilities faster.
• Experiment with Loadouts: Since you'll be starting fresh with each run, use New Game+ to experiment with different weapon types and abilities offered by the Gods.
• Unlock Remaining Cosmetics: If you haven't unlocked all of Hel's Cosmetics or other rewards, New Game+ is the perfect time to grind for them with your enhanced Eivor.

The Siege of Paris (Francia)

The challenges of Francia will feel different with your high-level Eivor. The "Rebel Missions" and "Infamy" system will reset, but your combat prowess will make them more manageable.

• Dominate Rebel Missions: Your powerful gear will make short work of most rebel targets, allowing you to quickly gain Infamy and unlock new gear from Pierre's shop.
• Focus on Story Choices: If you made different choices in your first playthrough, New Game+ is an opportunity to explore alternative outcomes in the main storyline of the DLC, such as your interactions with Charles the Fat or Sigfred.
• Collect Remaining Wealth: Use your enhanced mobility and combat skills to efficiently clear out any remaining wealth, mysteries, or artifacts you might have missed in Francia.

New Game+ is not just a replay; it's an opportunity to experience Valhalla with a fresh perspective, to refine your skills, and to truly become the legendary Viking Eivor was always meant to be. Skål!